Diet and Behavior

The use of mobile phones has followed similar trends to the prevalence of obesity across the world. Mobile phones emit radio frequency-modulated electromagnetic fields (RF-EMFs) that predominantly bombard the user’s head, leading to alterations in brain glucose metabolism and neuronal excitability. On the other hand, the brain is also responsible for regulating food intake and the perception of appetite through the hypothalamus, thereby adjusting overall body weight. Wardzinski et al. (2022) conducted this single-blind, sham-controlled randomized crossover study to investigate whether the radiation emitted by mobile phones influence food intake. The study participants (n = 15 healthy males, age = 23.47 ± 0.68 years) were fasted prior to exposure to either 25 minutes of RF-EMFs from two mobile phones, or to sham radiation. Thereafter, their food intake was evaluated through a standard buffet test (ad libitum), and had their brain energy homeostasis investigated using 31phosphorus-magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Analysis of the participants revealed an increase in caloric intake with mobile phone usage by 22-27% compared to sham controls, attributed for the most part to an increase in carbohydrate consumption. A rise in cerebral energy (demonstrated through phosphocreatine and adenosine triphosphate levels versus inorganic phosphate) was also observed in participants exposed to mobile phone radiation. The authors conclude that RF-EMFs may enhance overeating and promote obesity, and that RF-EMFs should be further investigated to understand its effects on brain homeostasis and functions [NPID: Body weight, brain, food intake, mobile phone, electromagnetic fields]

In this 2021 study, participants were randomized to a 12-week or 52-week behavioral weight management intervention or a brief self-help intervention. The objective was to determine if hedonic hunger decreases during this behavioral weight management program. Another target was to find out if hedonic hunger predicts BMI. The participants were UK-based adults, mostly with obesity (82.5%). The results revealed that hedonic hunger decreased at the 3-month point of the intervention, and this reduction remained at 24 months. Higher hedonic hunger scores at 3 months predicted higher BMI at 12 months but not at 24 months. After 12 months, the participants taking part in the 52-week behavioral weight management intervention had lower BMI than those participating in the 12-week program as well as those in the brief self-help intervention program. Hedonic hunger dropped during the weight management program irrespective of which intervention. The early reductions in hedonic hunger appeared to be related to lower BMI in the medium term. [NPID: hedonic hunger, BMI, weight management, behavior, UK]

This 2017 study investigated the effect of different food stimuli on people’s visual attention to food. A mobile eye tracking device was used to monitor visual attention while looking at various food pictures varying in calorie content. Attention was specifically measured by analyzing the fixation duration, fixation counts, and visit counts. The results demonstrated a higher level of visual attention towards cut up, ready-to-eat low-calorie foods when compared with both savory and sweet high-calorie foods. Men were found to pay more attention to high-calorie food items, while women focused on low-calorie foods more. It appeared that people’s attention varies depending on the type of food stimuli presented. The attention of men and women tend to be drawn to different types of food stimuli. These results may have implications for food marketing and healthcare promotion campaigns. [NPID: behavior, food stimuli, food cues, visual attention, calorie content, diet, nutrition]

This 2019 study evaluated long-haul truck drivers on their food choice patterns since there was limited data on truck drivers driving through Europe. The aim was to compare their dietary choices while working versus while at home. Questionnaires were handed out in 12 different languages at two truck stops in Germany. The survey determined that only 24% of the 404 truck drivers who responded were of normal body weight, while 46% were considered overweight and 30% obese. More than half of the participants were smokers, and 32% reported at least one chronic disease. With regards to eating habits, 37% of the truck drivers ate their meals often or always at truck stops, while 6% never did so. The long-distance drivers most brought fruits (62%) and sausages (50.6%) on their drives. The next most common food items were sandwiches (38.7%), self-cooked meals (37%), sweets (35.4%), and raw vegetables (31%). Compared to in the house, the participants consumed more sausages, energy drinks, soft drinks, and canned foods during their work trips. At home, fresh vegetables, legumes and fish were more often chosen. Food choice patterns and food preparation did not differ significantly across weight categories. But a link was found between food choice patterns and the available food appliances in trucks. To conclude, the working conditions of long-haul truck drivers influence food choices during work and make a healthy lifestyle difficult to follow. [NPID: eating behavior, truck drivers, working conditions, food choice, diet, occupational health, overweight, obesity]

The objective of this 2018 study was to examine if there is a correlation between patterns in eating behaviors with visual attention to food cues. This article also considered the effect of gender in this equation. Mobile eye tracking technology was used to measure visual attention to food cues, while the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ) was applied to determine participants’ eating behavior patterns (where it be restrained, emotional, or external eating). The results revealed the influential effect of restrained eating behavior on visual attention. Moreover, men who showed higher degrees of restrained eating behavior also paid more attention to low-calorie food cues. Women, on the other hand, had a notable association with emotional eating behavior. The women with higher levels of emotional eating behaviors were found to pay more visual attention to food cues. This study highlights the potential effect of gender on relationships between eating behavior and visual attention. [NPID: eating behavior, gender, visual attention, restrained eating, emotional eating, food calories]

Since there is inconsistent data on the link between breakfast consumption and overweight/obesity, this 2020 systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted on observational studies pertinent to the breakfast-weight status association. This article specifically searched for cohort and cross-sectional studies that reported either odds or risk ratio estimates for the association between breakfast skipping and overweight/obesity. In total there were 45 studies included in the meta-analysis, including 36 cross-sectional and 9 cohort studies. Compiling data from the cross-sectional studies, participants who had breakfast less frequently during the week were 48% more likely to be overweight/obese, and showed a 31% higher risk of abdominal obesity, when compared with those who frequently had breakfast. Even in the cohort studies, the low-frequency breakfast consumers were at greater risk of being overweight or obese (relative to high-frequency breakfast consumers). Considering these consistent results in cross-sectional and cohort studies, this meta-analysis concludes that skipping breakfast increases the risk of, and is associated with, overweight/obesity. There is no notable difference in trends among different ages, gender, geography, and economic conditions. [NPID: breakfast, diet, habits, eating, behaviors, behaviours, obesity, obese, overweight, review, meta-analysis, skipping breakfast]

This 2014 was the first in its time to investigate hedonic hunger (appetitive drive to eat for pleasure rather than hunger) among individuals with eating disorders. Hedonic hunger has been associated with overeating and uncontrolled overeating. Witt & Lowe therefore gathered a sample of patients with anorexia nervosa, restricting type (AN-R), anorexia nervosa, binge-purge type (AN-B/P), and bulimia nervosa (BN), and assessed the participants on hedonic hunger using the Power of Food Scale (PFS). The aims of the study included evaluating the relationship between PFS scores and frequency of binge eating and determining whether baseline PFS scores could be used to predict weight change during treatment. Individuals with bulimia nervosa scored higher on the PFS (hedonic hunger measure) compared to anorexia nervosa sufferers of either type (restricting and binge-purge), although those with binge-purge type appeared to score higher than than those with restring type anorexia. In uncontrolled and controlled analysis models, greater PFS scores were found to correlate with more frequent binge eating among patients with bulimia. A similar pattern was also observed among subjects with anorexia. Finally, PFS scores predicted alterations in weight in anorexic participants but not in bulimic patients. These findings suggest that hedonic processes may have vital roles in triggering binge eating, and that there may be potential in managing hedonic appetite in weight management among people with anorexia. [NPID: craving, hedonic hunger, appetite, eating disorders, overeating, binge eating, anorexia, bulimia]

This 2018 study applied the cognitive processing model of alcohol craving (CPMA) while investigating the role of food craving in the already well-established restrained eating–overeating relationship linked with binge eating disorder (BED). A sample of 1058 respondents completed an online survey assessing restrained eating, trait food craving, uncontrolled eating, and emotional eating. After implementing the CPMA, food craving was found to significantly affect, in an indirect manner, the association between restrained eating and both uncontrolled and emotional eating. Gender did not appear to influence the dynamics between restrained eating and different facets of overeating. This study has indicated that to target binge eating behaviors, it may be more effective to give consideration to the activation of food craving rather than to the reduction of restrained eating. Moreover, Verzijl et al. have uncovered that food craving is a target with potential to cut down people’s binge and overeating behaviors, regardless of the person’s gender. [NPID: craving, behavior, CPMA, binge eating, restrained eating, trait food craving, uncontrolled eating, emotional eating, overeating]

This 2021 study investigated whether total negative affect per day and level of negative affect variability per day possess influence on the likelihood of the individual eating high-calorie snacks in the presence of snacking cues. The data was extracted from an ecological momentary assessment study which took food logs and tested their 60 participants for 14 days using known snack cues. As with previous studies, the chances of the subject consuming a snack increased when food was available, when others were eating, and when higher negative affect was experienced. These associations between snack consumption with food availability and presence of others eating were significantly moderated by negative affect variability. In other words, correlations between snack cues and high-calorie snacking were weaker on days of higher negative affect variability. However, negative affect levels did not moderate the relationship between cue and snacking. In conclusion, variability in negative affect can have an influence on the snacking cue-behavior interaction. A complex relationship is suggested here between negative affect and calorie-dense snacking, perhaps requiring clearer conceptualizations. [NPID: behavior, negative affect, affect, food cues, snacking cues, snack cues]

Meule & Kübler (2012) highlight the increasing amount of evidence being released suggesting that food cravings and excessive food intake are due to addictive processes. This present study administered the Yale Food Addiction Scale (YFAS), a novel measure for identifying those with addictive dietary patterns. The respondents of this online study completed this YFAS as well as the Food Cravings Questionnaire-Trait (FCQ-T). Those participants diagnosed with food addiction according to the YFAS had higher scores on all food craving subscales except for anticipation of positive reinforcement (which was thought to perhaps come as a result of eating). Analysis models later indicated positive correlations between all the food craving subscales with food addiction symptoms, while positive reinforcement could negatively predict signs of food addiction. This study therefore demonstrates that people with addictive eating patterns feel more food cravings but do not expect positive reinforcement through eating. [NPID: behavior, cravings, addiction, positive reinforcement]

As obese people have been characterized by their lower executive functions and enhanced food cravings, Massicote et al. (2019) set out to determine if executive functions were linked to food cravings in the context of obesity. Another objective of this study was to find factors that predict highly palatable food intake and bland food consumption. Executive function was tested using a delayed discounting task (assesses impulsivity towards food and money) as well as the color-word interference test (CWIT; inhibition/flexibility). The participants were also shown images in addition to real food, before gaining access to unrestricted amounts of both highly palatable and bland foods. The researchers had hypothesized that executive functions would be negatively associated with food craving. The inhibition/flexibility condition of the color-word interference test (CWIT) did inversely correlate with food craving. Moreover, highly palatable food consumption was significantly predicted by food craving following induction, although bland food intake was not. This study has revealed a relationship between lower inhibition/flexibility and greater vulnerability to experience food cravings, which may have huge implications in managing obesity. The findings also supported the link between food craving and consumption, particularly connecting food craving with highly palatable foods but not bland foods. These conclusions could lead to interventions aimed at reducing food cravings being developed in the future to help people lose weight. [NPID: behavior, craving, executive function, obesity, impulsivity, inhibition, flexibility]

Lowe & Butyrn (2007) discuss the phenomenon called hedonic hunger, which is the elevated appetite a person feels due to the food environment. The psychological effect of hedonic hunger is said to be similar to that felt when undertaking activities such as compulsive gambling and drug use. The drive for pleasure (hedonism) is increased. It had been assumed that when a normal-weight individual tries to restrict food intake in order to lose or maintain weight, the irregular appetite is due to the dys-homeostasis (imbalance in diet-related systems) induced by the diet. However, the writers of this article review studies that may suggest that the deviation in appetite levels are more likely to be a result of hedonic hunger (eating less than wanted rather than less than required). This report also describes the Power of Food Scale (PFS), a measure of individual variation in appetitive responsiveness to rewarding properties of the food environment. According to preliminary evidence, this measure is valid and reliable, and when combined with altering food availability and modifying palatability, could be a promising approach to studying hedonic hunger. [NPID: behavior, hedonic hunger, food environment, addiction, compulsion, reward, palatability]

Johnson & Wardle (2014) here argue that although food palatability and variety have been repeatedly shown by human and animal studies to heavily influence appetite stimulation, satiety (feeling of fullness) delay, and the promotion of excessive energy intake, there is a limited amount of evidence estimating how strongly the weight of an individual human being is affected. In addition, the paradigm in the laboratory is not the same as the eating environment in a natural setting. Past studies have revealed that both food palatability and variety have a significant impact on short-term food consumption, with their increases linked with weight gain also in animal models. But the authors note that there are individual differences in vulnerability to the palatability effect, which can determine how likely the individuals are to gain weight. While the knowledge on how palatability and variety interact with eating is progressing, more intervention and epidemiological studies are needed to confirm whether controlling the surrounding food environment is crucial to tackling this obesity crisis, and for these laboratory findings to be considered and applied by public health. [NPID: behavior, food variety, food palatability, food environment, obesity]

While snacking models have shown that potato chips’ impact on energy intake correlates to their fat/carbohydrate content (FCHc), this 2019 study aimed to evaluate whether this fat/carbohydrate content can also influence the energy intake patterns and reward processing of rodents. The snacking model used in this study treated the satiated rats to foods rich in FCHc for 10 minutes three times a day. The rodents were discovered to consume higher levels of energy in a day when these FCHc-rich foods were unavailable, compared to days without access. There were also signs of binge eating episodes, with the animals eating 55% of their daily energy intake at times of limited high fat/carbohydrate feed access. When these fat- and carbohydrate-rich snacking opportunities were removed for six weeks and reintroduced to the rodents, not only did the total daily energy consumption rise, but the relative quantity of energy obtained from the FCHc-rich foods were also greater. In comparison with standard chow, snack foods and fat/carbohydrate foods were potent food reinforcers in satiated mice. The fat and carbohydrate content of the feeds appear to possess strong reinforcing properties and are likely to be influential in the alteration of food intake patterns and quantity when animals are given unrestricted food access. [NPID: behavior, reward, fat, carbohydrates, carbs, binge eating]

The purpose of this 2019 study was to quantitatively define hyperpalatable foods (HPF), and to use this definition to determine the prevalence in the U.S. food system. So far, the meaning of hyperpalatable foods has not been particularly specific and have been described using terms such as fast food and sweets. Fazzino et al. therefore quantified constituents such as fats, simple sugars, carbohydrates, and sodium, by collecting the common definitions written in the literature and using a type of nutrition software. The researchers found three clusters according to the research literature that defined HPF: > 25% kcal fat and ≥ 0.30% sodium by weight; > 20% kcal fat and > 20% kcal from sugar; and > 40% kcal carbohydrates with ≥ 0.20% sodium by weight. When this definition was applied to the Food and Nutrient Database for Dietary Studies (FNDDS), it was revealed that 62% of foods met HPF criteria. Those identified to meet the criteria included labeled reduced or low fat and vegetables cooked in creams, sauces, or fats. A substantial proportion of foods in the U.S. food system may be hyperpalatable including foods that had previously not been regarded as HPF. [NPID: behavior, hyperpalatable foods, fast food, sweets, high-fat high-sugar, western-style diet]

This 2017 study analyzed how the surrounding food environments and cues may predict the daily dietary behaviors of overweight and obese adults. Many studies have implied previously that the food environment influences eating behaviors. Also, individual dietary behavior, which is believed to be a risk factor for obesity, depends on internal and external cues. Over 14 days, this study used ecological momentary assessment (EMA) to assess the behaviors of the 51 overweight/obese adults. The participants’ meal and snack consumption were examined randomly and multiple times daily, simultaneously with cues and momentary food environment. The cues related to increased likelihood of eating were both internal (affect) and external (food availability, social situation, observing others eat). The surrounding food environment at the time of eating were found to predict meals and snacking: overweight and obese individuals were more likely to eat high-energy snacks when fast food restaurants were close by, and low-energy snacks while supermarkets were within proximity. Elliston et al. conclude that real-time food intake behavior is associated with internal and external cues in overweight and obese adults. Also, how the individual perceives the surrounding food environment influences food choice. [NPID: food cues, obese, obesity, affect, food availability, social situation, snacking, internal cues, external cues, perception]

This 2019 study was conducted to determine whether attention, mood, and satiety can be influenced by meal composition and post-meal activity, as suggested by previous research, but among a sample of subjects at genetic risk of developing cardiovascular/neurodegenerative diseases. Each participant (26 in total) took part in 4 dietary interventions including the high-fat Western diet, the Western diet (WD), Mediterranean-type diet, and the Mediterranean diet (all identical in energy content). The subjects then walked (on a moderate level) for 30 minutes. Attention, mood, satiety (fullness), and plasma cortisol concentrations were measured at fasting and at 1.5, 3.0, 4.5 hours following consumption. After eating each meal, attention was found to increase continuously for all 4 interventions. But attention decreased after post-WD walking. The diet interventions did not appear to affect post-meal mood, however, which was generally deemed “good” across all interventions. Moreover, cortisol concentrations in the blood did drop after intake of each diet, and the maximum level of satiety/fullness was documented 1.5 hours after meal intake. Postprandial satiety was in fact higher after the Mediterranean diet than after the Western diet. In summary, meal composition was not shown to markedly impact attention or mood and resting rather than walking after having a typical Western diet-type meal seems to have beneficial consequences on attention levels. Furthermore, following a Mediterranean diet could reduce energy consumption and possibly assist in the control of weight due to its strong and long-lasting effect on satiety. [NPID: behavior, attention, mood, satiety, post-meal activity, meal composition, cardiovascular disease, neurodegenerative disease, western diet, high-fat, mediterranean diet]

This 2016 study tries to differentiate 2 approaches that research studies use to describe eating pleasure: “Epicurean” pleasure which refers to the pleasure felt based on the aesthetic appreciation of the sensory and symbolic value of the food; and the eating pleasure that has been associated with short-term visceral (felt internally) sensations triggered by hunger, external cues, or internal emotional urges. Cornil & Chandon developed scales for Epicurean eating pleasure and utilized the external eating and emotional eating scales to find differences in tendencies to experience Epicurean eating and visceral pleasure. The results demonstrated a higher prevalence of Epicurean eating pleasure among the women than the men when the analysis model didn’t consider age, income and education. Unlike visceral eating pleasure, the tendency to feel aesthetic-related eating pleasure was linked with a preference for smaller food portions and better health, but not with higher BMI. The researchers believe that a more holistic approach ought to be taken to describe eating pleasure, one that takes into account the positive role of Epicurean eating pleasure in healthy eating and well-being. [NPID: behavior, pleasure, epicurean pleasure, sensory, symbolism, visceral, external cues, internal emotional urges, emotional eating, epicurean eating, visceral pleasure, portions, portion control, holistic health]

This essay published in 1994 explains how emotional regulation and dysregulation may have developed based on a clinical viewpoint. Cole et al. state that dysregulation in emotion control could arise and become a part of a damaging coping mechanism if the person is put under certain circumstances. Emotional symptoms are commonly seen in various forms of psychopathology. Dysregulation can be somewhat characterized by the subject’s use of cultural display rules, ability to reflect on the complexity and value of his/her own thoughts in a healthy way, access to a range of emotions, and ability to adapt between emotions in terms of intensity and duration. The authors mention that there is a framework which allows parties to assess how emotions are regulatory, how their governance changes over time, and to determine under what conditions an adaptive emotion process can be modified into a pattern of dysregulation associated with mental disorders. This research requires the study of children with or without mental health problems, with paradigms in place to allow researchers to see the children’s reactions beyond what they can personally report. It is believed to be particularly important to examine children and their families in emotionally challenging situations since the environment around the children appears to play a crucial factor in the disturbance of the kids’ interpersonal and intrapsychic functioning, as well as their learning of emotion control. [NPID: behavior, emotional regulation, coping mechanisms, psychopathology, emotion control, interpersonal, interpersonal functioning, intrapsychic functioning]

Here, Burger et al. (2016) analyzes the construct of hedonic hunger (high appetitive drive in response to food cues) using the data taken from 3 separate studies. The plan was to identify correlations between the Power of Food Scale (PFS) scores and neural responsivities during consumption, with perceptual hedonic (pleasure) ratings of food images, the anticipated intake level of palatable foods, behavioral food reinforcement, and changes in BMI and binge eating over time. The results indicated associations between hedonic hunger with behavioral food reinforcement, perceptual hedonic ratings, and also responses in the right and left postcentral gyrus’ (brain regions implicated in oral somatosensory processing during cue-elicited anticipation of food intake). Although hedonic hunger was not found to be linked with the participants’ BMI at baseline or with alterations in BMI over the 2-year follow-up, it was strongly correlated with binge eating at baseline (in 2 samples). To summarize, there is a high probability that people with high hedonic hunger show increased neural and perceptual responses to cues of palatable foods, already binge eat, and also have heightened drive to eat these tasty but unhealthy foods. [NPID: behavior, hedonic hunger, food cues, appetite, appetitive drive, pleasure, binge eating]